Route 20 crash claims 2 young brothers

BRIMFIELD — Two young brothers have been identified as the victims of a head-on collision Friday in Brimfield.

Dylan Riel, 4, and Jayce Garcia, 1, were killed in the crash on Route 20 just before 5 p.m. Friday.

Dylan and Jayce were in a car being driven by their aunt, who was baby-sitting the two boys. Nicole "Nikki" Riel of Southbridge is the mother of the two boys, according to her father, Mark Riel of Charlton.

"They were very active and very happy boys," Mr. Riel said.

The boys' aunt and her 4-year-old son, whose names were not released by authorities, were seriously injured but are expected to survive, according to the Hampden district attorney's office.

The district attorney's office said the boys' aunt was driving a 2010 Honda Civic east on Route 20 when she swerved it to the right to move around a landscaping truck that was making a left turn.

Her car hit a guardrail on the right side of the road, crossed over the center line, struck a westbound Ford Expedition and then crashed head on into a 2009 Honda Civic going west on Route 20, the district attorney's office said.

The driver and a child passenger in the 2009 Honda Civic sustained serious injuries but are expected to survive, according to the district attorney's office.

The driver and two children in the Ford Expedition were not injured, the district attorney's office said.

"Our entire family have prayers for the other victims involved," Mr. Riel said. "I know the grief we're going through but I'm sure they are going through the same exact thing right now."

Two crosses have been placed at the site of the crash. The crosses, joined at the center with the words "together forever," display the names Jayce and Dylan.

In addition to the boys' mother, Dylan leaves his father, Eric Hardy of Webster, and Jayce leaves his father, Andres Garcia of Southbridge, as well as a half-brother, Tristan Garcia-Cruz of Southbridge, and many loving grandparents, uncle, aunts and cousins, according to Mr. Riel.

Dylan attended preschool in Southbridge. He was on the T-ball team in Holland. The two brothers loved fishing, skateboarding, basketball and "basically, every little thing a little boy would love," Mr. Riel said.

The Brimfield Police Department, the Brimfield Fire Department, the Sturbridge Fire Department and state police from the Sturbridge barracks, the detectives unit of the Hampden district attorney's office, Crime Scene Services and Collision Analysis Reconstruction Section went to the scene.

The crash remains under investigation by the Hampden district attorney's office, including the question of whether the children were restrained. No one has been charged.

Paradise Funeral Home in Oxford is directing arrangements for Dylan and Jayce, according to Mr. Riel. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Riel Brothers Funeral Fund at www.giveforward.com.